New Hampshire AFL-CIO

Dear Brothers and Sisters:

We are pleased to announce that to help with the constantly increasing costs of higher education, the NH AFL-CIO will this year award a minimum of three scholarship awards: the first for $1500, second for $1000 and third for $750 for the 2022-2023 school year. Additional scholarships may be awarded, subject to funds raised.

The Executive Council of the New Hampshire AFL-CIO named our scholarship program in honor of Sister Linda Horan, longtime IBEW member and former Chair of the Scholarship Committee, who lost her hard-fought battle with cancer in early 2016. The scholarship program was a labor of love for Linda, who was always committed to “leaving the ladder down” for the next generation. It is our hope to honor Linda’s passionate advocacy for workers again this year by making it a banner year for the Linda Horan Scholarship Program. We can only do that with your help!

We are asking at this time for any financial assistance that your local is able to provide to help us maintain our successful AFL-CIO scholarship essay program and maximize the amount of scholarship aid we can offer. Through the generosity of our affiliates, we were able to offer a record amount of assistance last year and we hope to help even more students in their quest for higher education this fall.

We hope you will also encourage your members to contribute to the Linda Horan Scholarship Program and that you will share with them the enclosed contribution form. Making a tax-deductible contribution to help fund the Scholarship Program is a great way for us all to lead by example and to leave the ladder down for others to follow. In the words of labor’s great friend, the late Senator Paul Wellstone, “Never separate the life you live from the words you speak.”

Most importantly, please help to get the word out to your members about the scholarship program so that they are aware of this great benefit available to members and their families. It pays to belong!

Enclosed you will find the contribution forms, the scholarship application, and the announcement (this includes the 2022 essay topic and the rules).

Winners are selected based on essays that are submitted on a topic selected by the Scholarship Committee. Essays are judged on understanding, writing style, content and significance to Labor Unions. Applicants are encouraged to draw on the experiences of their families and communities which will provide an opportunity for students to discuss unions with their parents and for members to think about what their union means to them.

In keeping with our tradition, scholarship winners will be honored at our Labor Day Breakfast, which will be held at St. George’s Cathedral in Manchester on September 5th. Winners and their families will be invited to attend as our guests.

This year the deadline for receipt of applications and essays is Monday, June 20, 2022, at 4 p.m. Winners will be announced on or before July 25, 2022.

We thank you in advance for your help and support in making this a special year to honor Sister Linda and carry on her passion for many years ahead.

If you have questions, please contact us at 603-623-7302. Rules and applications will also be made available on the NH AFL-CIO website.

Thank you!

In Solidarity,

2022 Scholarship Committee:

Glenn Brackett, NH AFL-CIO President
Janice Kelble, Deb Howes, James Lemay, Rachel Horan, Mike Smith, Kevin Longtin, Dave Spechuilli, Bobby Jones

Both local and individual contributions to the scholarship fund can be sent to:

NH AFL-CIO EAP Services
Linda Horan Scholarship Fund
P.O. Box 801
Enfield, NH 03748

*NH EAP Services is a charitable tax-exempt organization, so contributions are tax deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.

Pres. Glenn Brackett joined labor allies and worker safety advocates to remember those workers lost on the job and advocate for protections that will make every job site safe.

In the last year as COVID-19 has mercifully receded, we’ve heard a lot about how work is changing. We’ve all seen it, either in our own lives or in the careers of those close to us. Regrettably one thing has clearly not changed – too many people in this country are put in the position of having to risk their lives to make a living. Every Spring, we observe  Workers’ Memorial Day to mourn and remember our fellow workers who have died on the job and pledge to continue our efforts to guarantee a safe workplace for everyone. 

This observation is always very deeply felt within organized labor. As a movement, we not only demand safe jobsites for our members but advocate forcefully for safe workplaces for everyone. And as frontline workers ourselves, we know the risks – and the losses – firsthand. 

In the last year, we’ve seen workplaces gradually getting more and more safe as the pandemic has died down, thank god. At the same time, throughout the crisis, workers in a number of businesses have realized just how vulnerable they are. Shamefully, too many employers were too slow or too apathetic to take workers’ health and safety concerns seriously during the pandemic. 

The reaction from these employees has been both perfectly rational and somewhat surprising: They’ve increasingly turned to organizing themselves into union bargaining units. We’ve seen these efforts all over the country – from Washington State to Alabama, from Dartmouth here in New Hampshire to home healthcare workers in California. Workers in newsrooms, coffee shops, and warehouses have taken on some of the most anti-labor companies and tactics and hung together to win representation. While the economic uncertainty that accompanied the pandemic played an obvious role in their efforts, time and again organizers cited the need to feel safe on the job as the initial inspiration for considering joining a union. 

There has never been a substitute for workers asserting their own power and this increase in unionization gives us both hope and a practical strategy for guaranteeing safer workplaces in the future. Working together and effectively advocating for comprehensive health and safety rules offers the tools necessary for workers in every sector and industry. Hopefully, this work will mean fewer names on the plaque we annually engrave with the names of our brothers and sisters lost on the job on Workers’ Memorial Day.  

On this Workers’ Memorial Day, we can look back on the pandemic for lessons learned and a reaffirmation of the values of the labor movement. Every year, I urge that we vow to redoubel our efforts to guarantee safety at work so everyone can always come home from the jobsite safe and healthy. Everyone deserves nothing less.

ICYMI: This Labor Day, let’s pass the Richard L. Trumka PRO Act

This Labor Day, let’s pass the Richard L. Trumka PRO Act and return power to the people who make our economy and our communities work – the workers. Click below to watch our Labor Day video in support of the PRO Act.

This year, in honor of Sister Linda Horan, the NH AFL-CIO will again award scholarship assistance

Linda Horan Scholarship Program

This year, in honor of Sister Linda Horan, the NH AFL-CIO will again award scholarship assistance. Members in good standing of an affiliated local union, their spouses, children, grandchildren, stepchildren, or legal wards are encouraged to apply. A minimum of three scholarships will be awarded; one for $1,500, one for $1,000 and one for $750. Additional prizes may be awarded contingent on funding available.

Scholarship applicants must submit a 750-1,000 word (3 to 4 pages double-spaced) essay on the following topic:

The Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act addresses many of the major shortcomings with our current law. Passing the PRO Act would help restore workers’ ability to organize with their co-workers and negotiate for better pay, benefits, and fairness on the job. How would passing the PRO Act also promote greater racial & gender economic justice and bring greater fairness to the workplace?

Essays will be judged on understanding, writing style, and significance to Labor Unions. Applicants are encouraged to draw on the experiences of their families and communities. Two copies of the essay must be submitted – one may be a photocopy. All wording identifying the union member, or the name of the member’s union will be redacted, so please avoid use of such identifying information in your essay.

Those eligible are members in good standing, or the spouses, children, grandchildren, stepchildren, or legal wards of a member in good standing, of unions affiliated with the NH AFL-CIO. The union member must live or work in New Hampshire.

A completed application form must be verified by your local union official and must accompany the essay. Application forms are available from your local union or the NH AFL-CIO, 161 Londonderry Turnpike, Hooksett, NH 03106 (or you can call 603-623-7302 or 603-513-8176).

Traditionally scholarships have been awarded at the NH AFL-CIO Annual Labor Day Breakfast, but due to the uncertainty of in-person events this year, the announcement of 2021 Scholarship Winners will be posted on the NH AFL-CIO website, as well as our Facebook page, on or before August 31st, 2021.

Winners must provide proof of undergraduate enrollment in a college, community college, university, or recognized trade school for the fall semester, 2021.

Essays and application forms must be received by the NH AFL-CIO Scholarship Committee, no later than 4:00 p.m., TUESDAY, August 24th, 2021 at: NH AFL-CIO, 161 Londonderry Turnpike, Hooksett, NH 03106. WE ARE ALSO ASKING AFFILIATED LOCALS TO CONSIDER CONTRIBUTING TO OUR SCHOLARSHIP FUND.

Please contact communications@nhaflcio.org, your local affiliate, or the NH AFL-CIO Facebook page for copies of the necessary forms or with any questions or concerns.

Brothers & Sisters, Allies & Friends:

As you might know, our fight against SB 61 is headed to the New Hampshire House of Representatives. The bill is scheduled to be heard in the House Labor Committee next week on THURSDAY, MARCH 25th at 10:00AM. It is crucial that we take this opportunity to make sure that our voices are heard and that the members of the House Labor Committee hear LOUD AND CLEAR that the citizens of New Hampshire oppose so-called “right-to-work!”

You can express your opposition to SB 61 easily from your computer by using the directions below. If you have any questions about how to sign-in in opposition, how to testify via ZOOM at the hearing, or how to submit written testimony to the committee, please contact us at communications@nhaflcio.org.

To view the House Labor Committee Hearing on Senate Bill 61 on 3/25/21 @ 10:00 AM, use the following information:

1. To join the webinar: https://www.zoom.us/j/98630616522

2. Or Telephone: Dial (for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location): 1-929-205-6099

3. Webinar ID: 98630616522

The following email will be monitored throughout the meeting by someone who can assist with and alert the committee to any technical issues: hcs@leg.state.nh.us or call (603-271-3600). Executive session on pending legislation may be held throughout the day, time permitting, from the time the committee is initially convened.

Here is the information/instructions for those that wish to sign up and testify:

1. To sign in to speak, register your position on a bill and/or submit testimony, use this link: http://gencourt.state.nh.us/house/committees/remotetestimony/default.aspx

2.     After clicking the link, select the date of the House hearing during which you wish to testify on the calendar (March 25th).

3.     In the dropbox below “Select the Committee,” select House Labor, Industrial and Rehabilitative Services.”

4.     In the dropbox below “Choose the Bill,” select “10:00 am – SB61.”

5.     Select the appropriate option for the “I am” dropbox (likely “Member of the Public”)

6.     Fill in the content box under “I’m Representing” with the business, organization, or group you are representing. If you are representing yourself only, write “myself.”

7.     Under the “Indicate Your Position on this Bill,” check the circle stating “I oppose this Bill.”

8.     If you wish to speak during the hearing to present your testimony, check the box next to “I Wish to Speak on this Bill.”

9. Click “Continue” at the bottom of the webpage.

10. Fill in your first name, last name, phone number, and email address, and click “Continue.”

11. Check the box next to “By clicking this checkbox, you agree that the information you have provided is truthful to the best of your knowledge.”

12. Click “Continue.”

13. To submit your written testimony to the Labor Committee, send it to: HouseLaborIndustrialandRehabilitativeServices@leg.state.nh.us.

You will see that on the bills Docket Page that there is also an executive session scheduled for the House Labor Committee to vote on Senate Bill 61 scheduled for March 30th at 9:00 AM.You may view this executive session by using the following link (I will send this out in email updates over the coming days as well): https://www.zoom.us/j/91970098494